Skipped Turns
by Wandering Namekian
Summary: A series of stories set between R2 episodes, focusing on a variety of characters. Pairings: Cornelia/Guilford, Suzaku/Euphy, Schneizel/Kanon, Gino/Kallen, Tohdoh/Chiba, Lelouch/Shirley, Jeremiah/Sayoko, maybe more. Most recent: Turn 0.14: Day Off.
1. Turn 25 03

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Code Geass. **  
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**Author's Note: PLEASE READ! I KNOW IT'S LONG, BUT I PROMSIE IT WILL HELP! **First off, these are a series of stories that function basically like the Picture Dramas CLAMP released, in that they are set between episodes. The Turn Number indicates where they are. These are all in Season 2, I also have a corresponding story called "Missing Stages" for Season 1 (as Season 1 has Stages, not turns). Most of these deal with the Britannian side, and I will go ahead and say that my favorite characters are Cornelia and Guilford, and I am also rather partial to Suzaku, Euphy, Schneizel, Kanon, Kallen and Gino (you will also probably see Tohdoh and Chiba a bit). Therefore, they are the main people you will see in these stories. That being said I am open to taking requests if you have a situation you would like to see, I have figured out/theorized a LOT of what seems to be happening between episodes, so I am open to writing just about anything. For the most part, they will probably be consistent, but I might do a few things that contradict each other (mainly because even I go back and forth about the exact details of Cornelia and Guilford's relationship).

Anyway, I should probably let you know my shipping preferences, as I do not deviate and will not write any of these characters paired with anyone else, so if you do make a request, keep this in mind. There is no guarantee that all of these pairings will show up, but they probably will in some form at some point. I'll post a more specific pairing list for each story/chapter: Cornelia/Guilford, Suzaku/Euphy, Schneizel/Kanon, Gino/Kallen, Tohdoh/Chiba, Lelouch/Shirley, Jeremiah/Sayoko, Villetta/Ohgi, and recently I have begun to consider the possibility of Milly/Nina, but I am not sure on this yet.

Okay, there are a few things in this story that may confuse you, if you don't spend all of your free time on the Code Geass Wiki trying to understand every unimportant detail of this show/look at all post-series Sunrise/CLAMP publications to get any information you can (yes, I'm a loser). First of all, **Guilford isn't blind.** I'm not saying "Guilford isn't blind, I made this decision as an author because I like him." Actually I started a much longer story a while ago and went to great lengths to incorporate the fact that I assumed he _was_ blind and it was incredibly difficult, so I was rather upset when I figured/found this out. He's just sensitive to light. The wiki doesn't state that he's blind, just that he needs dark glasses, which makes sense given the fact that he grabs Cornelia's hand, which he would have to be able to see, and is part of the rebellion force at the end (and has a gun). Also, in post-series set art, he doesn't even have the glasses anymore, it seems that it's just some sort of condition he'll get over eventually or he's just sensitive to sunlight. I just sort of assumed he was (as I've heard many other people have as well) given the fact that he was wearing dark glasses which typically means BLINDNESS. That being said, if anyone asks me why he isn't blind in a review or tries to correct me on this, I will not respond and may delete your review out of annoyance (I probably won't, though, I'm kind of a whore that way).

Also, this story is based on an official CLAMP post-series picture from Villetta's wedding, where Cornelia is holding the bouquet (the same one Villetta is holding in the Wedding Photo from the last episode), which implies that she caught it (which made me so happy I felt the need to write a story about it). There's a link to it on my LJ (username: dende_sama).

Pairings in this story: Cornelia/Guilford, Gino/Kallen, and Tohdoh/Chiba.

**Turn 25.03: Bouquet**

Weddings were not designed for soldiers. The marriage itself was perfectly alright, of course, intricate clothing and elaborate ceremonies were far from foreign to them. From that point on, however, it was all downhill. A drawn-out meal full of conversations with sentimental individuals, followed by romantic dancing; the overt display of emotion was simply overwhelming and, to an extent, unnerving. The combination of these two events had left Cornelia, Guilford, Tohdoh, Chiba, Xianglin, Claudio and Kallen sitting at what was currently the only occupied table at Viletta and Ohgi's wedding.

Kallen, for her part, seemed to be trying (with little success) to ignore the fact that Gino was dancing with Milly. "...Two-faced Britannian jerk..."

"Even if your assertion about Wineburg was correct, you can't blame Britannia for it. There are terrible men everywhere," Cornelia said.

"What do you mean 'if my assertion is correct?' He said he wanted to come here with me, and he was so annoying about it, I finally said he could be my date, and now he's dancing with Milly!"

"He asked you to dance six times, and only said 'yes' to that girl because you told him to," Chiba pointed out. "It seems unfair for you to be angry at him for doing what you asked."

"...I guess." Kallen was still looking at him rather angrily.

Xianglin seemed a bit confused by the whole situation. "If it upsets you that much, why don't you just dance with him next time he asks?"

"It's not like you won't get another opportunity... or twelve," Claudio added. Indeed, they had all basically given up on real conversation after the dancing had begun, due to the frequency of Gino's intrerruptions.

"Because, I can't! I can't just let him think I'm waiting around for him like some sort of damsel in distress!"

"I'm going to go out on a limb and say that I'm pretty certain that isn't how Wineburg sees you," Guilford commented.

"Accepting a man's invitation to dance doesn't make you any weaker of a woman. Being unaware of the sort of man not to dance with is what can get you into trouble," Cornelia said. "However, if it really bothers you that much, why don't _you_ ask _him? _I'm sure it would make his day."

"Now, hold on! I never said I liked him!" Kallen answered quickly, although she was beginning to blush.

"At the point where even _I've_ noticed, you don't have to say anything," Tohdoh said. "And I agree with Commander Cornelia, you should take this opportunity to enjoy yourself."

"You're young, you should try to have a good time," Chiba said in continuation. "Besides, I'm sure Ohgi will be upset if he doesn't think you're happy, and you don't want to worry him on his wedding day, do you?"

"One dance will only take you a few minutes, even if you don't enjoy it. But if you let the whole evening go by, you'll regret wasting it for much longer," Guilford added.

"Alright! Alright! If you're all going to gang up on me like that, I guess I don't have a choice! I'll ask him to dance! But don't be surprised when I come back and tell you it was all a waste of time!"

Kallen got up and walked over to the dance floor, where couples were beginning to separate as the song ended. She walked rather purposefully up to Gino, and grabbed him by the shoulder, forcing him to turn around and look at her. Her face was bright red, and although none of them back at the table could hear what she said, they could see that Gino reacted by breaking into a wide smile and grabbing her hands. Although, at first, Kallen seemed rather flustered by his enthusiasm, as they started to dance, she relaxed and as time went on they seemed to be talking relatively comfortably.

"I do hope Kozuki realizes that Wineburg is anything but a waste of her time," Cornelia said.

"You like him that much?" Tohdoh asked.

"Actually, I don't really know him that well, personally speaking. However, I know that he was the only person loyal enough to Britannia to stand up to Schneizel's attempted coup, yet he joined the Black Knights before the end, and I'm assuming he only did that for her. His trust in her outweighed even his loyalty to his own country, and there isn't much more a woman can ask for than that."

At this comment, Guilford's cheeks grew slightly red and he looked away from the rest of them.

"I would disagree, with that, Commander. You cannot deny the greatness of a man who would do anything to serve his nation," Chiba answered, making it Tohdoh's turn to feel uncomfortable.

Cornelia gave her a small smile, realizing her error. "No, I certainly cannot. Although it would take a woman better than myself to love him."

Chiba also seemed a bit embarrassed. "At this point, I do think we are talking about matters of taste."

"I suppose you are right."

Claudio looked around at them. Weren't these allegedly the bravest people in the world? How could they be so afraid of their own feelings they were incapable of speaking about them directly? He sighed. "You four are really unbelievable. However, if you refuse to take your own advice, I suppose someone should." He stood up and looked at Xianglin. "Xianglin, I'm not sure if you remember me, my name is Claudio S. Darlton, I was at the Black Knights facility with you in the time before Lelouch's death, and before that I was a pilot for Brtiannia. Assuming you can put aside the fact that we've probably tried to kill each other dozens of times, I would be honored to have this dance."

Xianglin looked rather surprised, a trait she shared with the rest of the table. "I remember you perfectly well, and I hold nothing against you. In fact, since we met at the facility, you have shown me nothing but kindness, which is why I feel the need to decline, as I would not be enjoyable to dance with."

"Neither will I, we'll make a good match," he replied with a small smile. However, when he noticed her expression, it disappeared. Although his face had grown more serious he did not retract the hand he had offered her. "I won't insist, however, I have found that often the best way to deal with loss is to go on living the best you can. Don't feel guilty over being happy, because no matter how happy you are, it can't make you forget someone you love."

Xianglin blinked a few times, rather shocked at the obvious earnestness with which he spoke. He was right, misery did nothing to augment her memories of Xingke, it only stopped her from living in the world he had worked so hard to create. Slowly, Xianglin took his hand and stood up, managing to smile a bit. "I must warn you, I've never really learned to dance like a Britannian."

"Don't worry about that. I was never very talented at dancing myself, so this should be interesting," Claudio said, returning her smile as he escorted her to the dance floor.

"Who exactly is he?" Tohdoh asked Guilford, giving them both something to focus on other than the Cornelia and Chiba's rather uncomfortable conversation. "I know I've seen him with the two of you before."

"Claudio was a member of the Glaston Knights, which were a group not dissimilar to the Four Holy Swords you commanded," Guilford explained. "They were originally under the command of General Darlton, who was their adoptive father, as well as their commander."

"Out of the six members of his family that once served under me, he is the only one still alive," Cornelia said, unable to hide the guilt in her voice, causing Guilford to look at her, obviously concerned. She quickly regained control of her emotions, the last thing she needed to do was worry him. "And now it seems like he's always overwhelmed, as I've given him his father's old job."

"It seems that he and Xianglin are in a similar situation then," Tohdoh answered. "As she's been selected to replace Xingke, now that he's passed on. It may do her some good to spend time with someone as familiar with misfortune as she is." He took a look around the table and then out to the dance floor. "Although, on second thought, that actually seems rather difficult to avoid."

"Between the four of us, it seems we're managing to make a wedding more depressing than a funeral," Cornelia observed.

Chiba sighed and looked out onto the dance floor again. Gino, Kallen, Xianglin and Claudio all actually seemed to be enjoying themselves. Everyone did. As Tohdoh had just observed, they had all experienced deep pain and loss, certainly if some of them could enjoy themselves tonight, they all could. She looked back at Tohdoh and took a deep breath. "I-I would like to request—"

"Hey!" Chiba let out the breath she was still holding in as a drunk looking Tomaki came to lean on their table. She seemed rather unsurprised by the interruption, almost as if she had known it was coming.

"What do you want?" Chiba asked. Just because she wasn't surprised didn't mean she wasn't upset. Tomaki always managed to evoke a very specific feeling of loathing in her. Maybe it was because so many of their best people had died, Asahina and Urabe among them, that, as wrong as it was, she had to question how someone like Tomaki had managed to survive.

"W-Where's Xi-Xi- that Chinese chick?"

"Not here, obviously," Chiba said.

Tomaki looked out at the dance floor. "Woah! Hold on! Is that her dancing with that Britannian pretty boy? What's he got that I haven't got?"

"The ability to remember her name?" Chiba muttered.

"That 'Britannian Pretty Boy' as you called him, is one of my subordinates, and he rarely finds opportunity to enjoy himself, so I request that you leave him alone."

"Oh yeah, or what? You can't do anything to me! The war's over! You—"

Suddenly there was a brief flash followed by a piece of Tomaki's hair falling in front of his face to the ground, and then a small thud. He turned toward the source of the noise, to see a knife now sticking into a tree behind him, then turned back to see Cornelia holding two identical knives. "You certainly don't think I need an army to take care of you."

"B-But how..." He looked from her to the knife again. "...You..."

Chiba couldn't stop herself from laughing a bit at his confusion and frustration, and was surprised to hear the whole table join her. None of them laughed long or hard, but she was unsure she had ever heard any of them laugh at all before.

"Fine, whatever!" Tomaki said. "I'll leave them alone! That Brit better not try anything though..." He glared at Cornelia once more before walking off.

Tohdoh glanced back at the knife in the tree. "Was that really the most fun any of us have had all evening?"

"So it would seem," Guilford answered.

"Ah—" Chiba started, determined to try again.

"Maybe this _is_ ridiculous," Tohdoh said to himself. He looked at Chiba. "I cannot promise any skill in this, however, keeping that in mind, would you like to dance?"

Chiba blinked a few times, obviously completely shocked. "Y-Yes! I-I mean... I would be honored, sir."

"Very well, then." Tohdoh stood up and offered Chiba his hand, which she took, unable to stop smiling as he led her to the dance floor.

The rather touching moment came with the unfortunate side effect of leaving Cornelia and Guilford alone at the table, and as the only people left at the wedding not dancing. They sat in a silence that was surprisingly less companionable than the ones they often shared; both too afraid of saying what needed to be said to speak at all.

"The sun's gone down," Guilford said, finally. "I hadn't even noticed." He removed the dark glasses he was wearing, replacing them with his normal ones. She almost wished had hadn't done that. Now she could see the concern on his face much more clearly, which only made the whole situation worse.

Cornelia knew if they were going to join the others, it would have to be her suggestion, and so much of her wanted to do just that. Yet, when she spoke, all that came out was a small laugh, followed by, "It seems that no matter how much I try to dress up like a girl, I still end up pulling a knife before the end of the evening."

"I wouldn't have it any other way," he seemed a bit confused. "Would you?"

She smiled at him. "I suppose not."

Cornelia's smile disappeared rather quickly as she looked from the knives in her hand, back to the bouquet on the table. For how easily she'd caught it, she was sure Villetta had thrown it at her on purpose. Cornelia knew that Villetta was trying to help, but it seemed that she'd misunderstood the situation. She and Guilford needed no help falling in love, that had been confessed and comfortable long before. All this did was bring to their attention a rather complicated set of questions that they would have preferred not to confront. Questions of marriage, domesticity and normalcy; the sort of things that normal people took as a matter of course, yet neither of them had ever considered.

So, now it sat between them, separating them, even as it was intended to bring them together. It mocked them with promises of bliss and a normal life; a normal life it knew they were unable to lead. Normal people had comfort, contentedness and certainty; soldiers knew only violence and turmoil. Periods of rest were brief, and easily shattered; memories of music and feasts replaced with the sound of explosions and the smell of gunpowder. No matter how long peace lasted, they would always be waiting for it to end. For them the end of a period of peace was as natural and unavoidable as the final note of a waltz. The comfortable complacency of normal people was something they could never experience.

As she looked out onto the dance floor, the two couples that had left their table stood out, and it wasn't their lack of skill that allowed her to spot them so easily. Although, the awkwardness with which they moved made a rather poignant metaphor for their situation: soldiers could not masquerade as normal people.

"Princess Cornelia, if something is bothering you, I do wish you would at least speak to me about it."

As soon as she turned to look at him, she realized that had been a mistake. The mixture of hurt and worry on his face made even the smallest of lies impossible. "I'm simply wondering if we truly belong in this world."

"We don't seem to have much of a choice. And besides, I would say it's our turn to adapt, wouldn't you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, look at Villetta, for example."

Cornelia looked out at the dance floor, realizing for the first time that she had not noticed Villetta dancing before, despite the fact that Ohgi was far from skilled: they didn't stand out at all.

"She was never meant to be a soldier," Guilford continued. "The world we lived in before forced people like her to fight. Out of all these people, very few of them were suited to a world of war; yet they found ways to be happy, to get up every morning and bring purpose to their lives."

Cornelia placed the knives softly on the table next to the bouquet. "It seems you already knew exactly what I was thinking before you even asked."

"That is my job."

"Thank you, Guilford." Cornelia smiled and placed her hand on top of his. "My knight."

He returned her smile, as he interlaced his fingers with hers. Cornelia was sure they could carve out a life, happiness even, in this new world: Lelouch's World; Euphy's World. Perhaps it shouldn't be bothering her that she didn't fit into this world to begin with, adaptation was part of life, after all. Then again, how could she _not_ fit into Euphy's world?

Because in Euphy's world, people didn't "fit in." In Euphy's world, people simply were. There was no urge for everyone to conform, to be Britannian, Japanese or Chinese, and no urge to narrowly define what those words meant. Those differences were what _caused_ wars. This world was beyond that, people were different, but not for the purpose of alliances or exclusion. Indeed, as she looked at the dance floor again, although Chiba and the others stood out, no one avoided them; it was as if none of them even saw it.

Although the realization made her feel better, it did nothing to solve the problem she'd had the entire evening: she had no idea how to express that she wanted to dance in the first place. For her, it seemed, the hardest part of Euphy's World was finding a way to join it. Yet, almost immediately, that also seemed obvious. Rather suddenly, she stood up, pulling Guilford behind her, and began to all but drag him toward the dance floor.

"P-Princess Cornelia?" As she looked back at him, he seemed shocked and possibly more concerned than before.

"Something wrong?"

"N-No, it's just that this is rather impulsive. It's not really like you."

"I know, I suppose it's simply that I don't know a way to go into Euphy's World besides how she would have done it."

"I cannot think of a better one," Guilford answered, smiling as she finally led him to the dance floor, leaving only the bouquet and knives at the table.

**Author's Note:** Okay, thanks for reading, I hope you liked it. Please let me know if you did, as it will motivate me to post more of these. Also, after writing this, I decided I kind of like the idea of Xianglin and Caludio, because their lives are both so terrible. If anyone else would like to see more of this, let me know I might write something about them.


	2. Turn 0 14

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Code Geass, if anything, it owns me.

**Pairings****in****this****Story:**Cornelia/Guilford.

**Author's****Note:**I know, Cornelia and Guilford again. I said they would probably be the main focus. And today is Guilford's birthday I have a Guilford-level obsession with Cornelia, and I even have the commemorative plate to prove it (I posted the picture on my livejournal, you can look at it there if you don't believe me [lj: dende_sama]). Also, I really like giving some sort of development to the Glaston Knights and Darlton, because they were so interesting, but the show never had time to focus on them.

I am aware that most people cannot tell Glaston Knights by name (I personally only learned because I spend way too much time on the Code Geass Wiki/watching Code Geass, and I actually ended up _trying_to learn them, next task: remember the names of the Four Holy Swords and Houses of Kyoto!), therefore I have included a guide to help you know which is which. If you're wondering about the order, I've put them in order of how attractive I find them (although, honestly, they're all pretty attractive, even by Code Geass standards, whenever I see them together I think we're suddenly in a reverse harem anime). On the paper I wrote the original draft of this story on, there is an identical list, only that one has stars by their names to indicate how pretty they are. I have included both identifying features and how I remember what they look like even when I don't have a picture. There's also a picture of all of them, with the guide underneath it, on my LJ.

**Glaston Knight Guide**

David = Straight Red Hair, Green Eyes – The only one who looks like he could be Darlton's _actual_kid

Bart = Blue Hair, Red Eyes - Looks like Lantis from Magic Knights Raearth

Alfred = Blond Hair, Blue Eyes – Somehow has a girlier version of Schneizel's haircut  
>Claudio = Curly Brown Hair, Purple Eyes – The Boy Who Lived, Also he looks kind of like George Micheal from <em>Arrested<em>_Development_ (which is funny because I always like to think he's the one that walks in on awkward situations)

Edgar = Silver Hair, Stupid Pink Glasses over Eyes – Kind of looks like Ellen DeGeneres (I think it's the hair)

Also, today is Guilford's birthday (Oct. 19th), according to the Code Geass guidebook I have, and his birthday is even mentioned in the story, so talk about relevance! Unfortunately, I was mired in midterms and missed posting a Euphy story on her birthday (Oct. 11th). I feel bad, but it's not my fault Guilford and Euphy are so close together (I feel like this makes things easier for Cornelia, she only has to go shopping once a year). The last one in "Missing Stages" was about Euphy, though, so I feel a bit better. Suzaku's is in July, so yeah... sorry guys...

And I'm not telling you which version of their relationship I'm using for this one ahead of time, as it will be obvious by the end of the story.

**Turn 0.14: Day Off**

Guilford sighed as he looked in the mirror, straightening his vest before buttoning it. He was aware that he could get away with much less formal clothing than Victorian-style waistcoats, however, he couldn't afford to change even the most minute detail of his behavior. He couldn't give anyone reason to believe that Princess Cornelia's absence was affecting his ability to function or to do his job.

Days off were more difficult than working, and not only because he held himself to a standard of dress above that of his uniform. At least when he was at work he was distracted, as he did everything in his power to fix the problems (or more often, limit the damages) caused by the new joke of a Viceroy, Calares. Typically, when interacting with the alleged Viceroy, Guilford's emotions ranged between annoyed at the man's utter stupidity and obsession with rank to outrage over the fact that someone, somewhere had thought _he_would be an apt replacement for Princess Cornelia; which was in fact a rather welcome change from his new base emotional state of overwhelming loneliness.

Immediately, Guilford looked down at the clock on his dresser. Two minutes. While trying to force himself to think of anything else except for Princess Cornelia, he had thought of her in just over two minutes. Maybe he did have some sort of problem, even if no one could prove it. He reached up to remove the picture of her, Darlton, and himself that was pinned to the side of his mirror, but froze the instant he touched it. His hand dropped back to his side, lightly skimming over Cornelia's figure as it did so, but he was actually looking at his own image in the mirror.

It was pointless. Removing a few pictures of her from around his apartment or office wouldn't do anything to stop him from thinking about her, after all. Everything about his life, even his own reflection was linked to a memory of her. It was only natural that nothing, not even getting dressed in the morning, could be accomplished without thinking of her.

He sighed in defeat as he removed his glasses, opening the top drawer of the dresser and taking out a cloth to clean them.

. . . . . . . . . . . .

Pendragon:ImperialMilitaryHeadquarters:ConferenceRoom-2016a.t.b.

As he ran down the hall as quickly as he could, Guilford still couldn't believe he was running late. He was _never_ late, especially to meetings called by Princess Cornelia. Worst of all, he had the notes on the budget outline that they had come up with the day before, as she had asked him to organize them and bring them to the meeting, so his presence was actually necessary. Would she be angry with him? She had every right to be, still he couldn't stop himself from hoping that wouldn't be the case. He stopped at the door of the conference room, and carefully opened it, hoping to slip in unnoticed. However, as he began to look for an empty seat, he realized that the seats were all empty, save one, where Princess Cornelia was sitting.

Certainly he wasn't _that_ late. According to his watch he was only fifteen minutes late, to a meeting that was supposed to last several hours. "Y-Your Highness? Where is everyone?"

"The representative from Parliament canceled at the last minute. I tried to call you, but you didn't answer your phone, so I thought I would wait for you here."

He took a seat next to her, as she hadn't stood up, placing the notebook with their budget outline on the table. "My phone is actually broken, that's why I'm late in the first place, I was using it as an alarm, so—"

"That explains it. To be perfectly honest, I was a bit worried when you didn't answer. It's not like you at all. That's why I decided to wait."

"I apologize for wasting your time, Princess Cornelia."

"It wasn't as if I had anything planned. Honestly, waiting for you gave me an excuse not to go back to my office and flesh out the budget proposal."

"Could you use any help?"

"You really should take the day off. We start drafting plans for the establishment of Area 15 tomorrow, and you almost never take time off. You should try to enjoy yourself."

He wished he could just explain to her that, to him, spending the entire day alone with her in the office was much more enjoyable than anything he could do on his own. However, as the aftermath of such a confession would be incomparably uncomfortable, he needed to find another reason. "I'd probably just end up doing some of my own work anyway. Besides, I would feel guilty going out to have fun while you were stuck here. As your knight, I should at least suffer along with you."

"Guilford, your job is to protect me from assassination, not paperwork. Still, I can't deny that your help would make the day much less tedious." She gave him a small smile. "And I suppose if we're both going to insist on squandering our day off, we might as well do it together." Princess Cornelia looked at him for another moment, examining him quizzically. "Since when do you wear glasses?"

"O-Oh, well, always, but I normally wear contacts. I know that glasses aren't really considered ideal for a pilot." He, in fact, had his contacts in his pocket, and had planned to put them in at the first opportunity. "It's just that I was running late and didn't have a chance to put them in. I really am a bit of a mess today, your highness, I apologize."

"Guilford." She held up her hand to indicate that he'd said enough. "Don't worry. I wasn't scolding you. There are no regulations against pilots wearing glasses, like there are in they Air Force. I was actually going to say I thought they looked rather nice." She stood up. "Now, we should probably get going. Unfortunately the budget isn't going to write itself."

He was grateful that she had simply changed the subject, as it stopped him from having to attempt to respond to her compliment, which would have been a painful, awkward process for both of them. However, he still managed to make his automatic response of, "Of course, your highness," come out rather clumsily.

In fact, he was so distracted by what she'd said, that he didn't even realize he'd left the notebook with the budget outline on the conference table until they were halfway down the hall.

"Is everything alright?" Princess Cornelia gave him a rather confused look as she turned back toward him, after noticing he had stopped walking.

"I just left the budget notes back in the conference room." He gave her an apologetic smile. "I must apologize again, it seems that today really just isn't my day." Although, as soon as he said it, he realized that was completely untrue. Princess Cornelia had just complimented him, and he got to spend the entire day alone with her: today was most definitely his day. "You should go on ahead, Princess Cornelia. I'll just get it and meet you in your office."

"Don't be ridiculous, Guilford. I'll just wait for you here. Besides, we'll need to stop by the tech office and get you a new phone first, I need to be able to contact you, after all. "

"Very well, your highness. I'll hurry then." He rushed back to the conference room and grabbed his notebook off the table, then turned around to head back to Princess Cornelia, pausing only for a moment to remove the contacts from his pocket and toss them into the trash.

. . . . . . . . . . .

Guilford put his glasses back on before picking his hairbrush up off the dresser. He decided to take his time with actually brushing it, there was no reason to rush, after all. It wasn't as if he had anything even remotely enjoyable planned. The more time he spent getting dressed in the morning, the less time he had to spend outside pretending to enjoy himself, so really, being efficient was counter-productive.

. . . . . . . . . . . .

Area15:GovernmentBureau:CommandOffice-2015a.t.b.

"Really, Guilford, when are you going to get a haircut?" Darlton asked, looking over at him. "It's starting to become unmanageable. In fact, why don't you go do that today, technically this is our day off. You can spare an hour or so to get that done." It was true, it _was_supposed to be a day of leave, but Princess Cornelia had asked them to work so that they could leave Area 15 as soon as possible, since she wanted to be back in Britannia for Princess Euphemia's birthday in a week.

Guilford looked up at him, having to push his now chin-length hair back behind his ears as he did so. "I was thinking I might let it grow out, actually."

"You're kidding, right? You're a military man, not part of the court. It's hardly practical."

"Are you saying that I'll be needing a haircut as well, General Darlton?" Princess Cornelia asked, her tone was light, but held serious undercurrents. "After all, my hair is much longer than Guilford's."

Darlton was silent for a moment, realizing the error in trying to hold men and women to different standards, even seemingly trivial ones, in Cornelia's presence. "O-Of course not, your highness. It's just that his seems to be getting in his way, is all."

She looked over at Guilford, evaluating him for a moment. "I see. I suppose that could be a problem. Luckily it's one with a simple solution."

"You mean a trip to the barber?" Darlton suggested.

"I _mean_ a hair tie," Princess Cornelia answered, obviously getting a bit impatient with Darlton. She reached into her desk and after looking through it for a few moments pulled out a black hair tie and tossed it over to Guilford. "Here, Guilford. As long as it's not in your way, you may grow your hair out as long as you wish."

"T-Thank you, Princess Cornelia." He quickly tied up his hair.

Darlton looked at Guilford for a moment, then back at Princess Cornelia. "Princess, you have to admit, it makes him look a bit like a woman."

"Darlton, that's enough!" She said, a bit more harshly than expected, causing Darlton raise his eyebrows for a moment. When she continued, her voice was much calmer. "Guilford isn't one of your sons, after all. You can state your opinion, but you can't tell him what to do." She still sounded a bit annoyed. Guilford reasoned this was due to the fact that her subordinates were getting distracted over the matter of personal grooming and hair styles when they were supposed to be working. To be fair, they were actually getting distracted from working when they _weren't_ supposed to be working. She turned to Guilford, her tone a bit softer. "Don't listen to him, Guilford. You don't look like a woman. Your hair is fine, more than even."

He felt his face grow a bit warm and looked down at his desk to avoid looking at her directly, but he couldn't keep himself from smiling. "Y-Yes, your highness."

"So, you like long hair, do you Princess?" David said from over on the couch, where he and the rest of the Glaston Knights were sorting through some papers. "Do you think you could convince Dad to let me grow mine out too?"

"Unfortunately, David, I can't help you," Princess Cornelia said, feigning sympathy. "Unlike Guilford, you _are_ one of Darlton's sons."

"Your hair is as long as it's going to get while you're living under my roof," Darlton said to him. "Assuming Princess Cornelia or Lord Guilford will take you in, then I suppose you're free to do whatever you want."

"You're welcome to move in with me." Cornelia gave him a rather intimidating smile. "Of course, that means you'd have to keep the same sleep, work and exercise schedule that I do, but assuming you're willing to get up at five every morning, and start the day with two hours at the gym, I'm sure we can work something out."

David blinked a few times, he looked shocked, and more than a bit afraid. Bart laughed a bit, upon seeing his expression. "That's too intense for David. He'd probably pass out after the first thirty minutes."

"That's assuming you can get him up at that hour in the first place," Claudio said. "In my experience, getting him here by eight is a small miracle."

David looked over at Guilford. "What about you, Lord Guilford? You seem a bit more laid back."

Guilford scoffed. "I don't think so, David. The last thing I need are the sort of rumors that would circulate if one of my male subordinates moved into my apartment for no apparent reason. Especially if I look as effeminate as General Darlton seems to think."

"You're kidding, right sir? There's no way people could actually be confused about your orientation," David said.

"Yeah, it's called Princess Cornelia." Guilford heard Edgar whisper to Alfred. Guilford was thankful that he was the only one close enough to the couch to have clearly heard them.

"Okay boys, get back to work," Darlton said. "Those files aren't going to sort themselves."

There were an assortment of "yes sir"s and a few (much quieter) "we're not even supposed to be working today anyway"s from the Glaston Knights as they all reluctantly returned to the papers in front of them.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guilford wasn't sure if he should find it ironic or touching that David had informed him that was going to use his day off to get a hair cut. Guilford had actually been tempted to try to convince him and the other Glaston Knights to stay and work today, but it seemed unfair. There was no reason to make them more miserable than they already were. They had all been orphans to begin with, and now they'd lost their adopted father, their lives were probably like some sort of waking nightmare. With Darlton gone, he felt as if their well-being, both mental and physical, was his responsibility; it was the least he could do for the memory of a man he had considered his closest friend.

Spending time with them also forced him not to get bogged down in his own depression. Cornelia wasn't dead, after all. It was true that he didn't know where she was, but whenever he looked at the Glaston Knights or Suzaku Kururugi, he became keenly aware of the fact that things could be much worse.

He walked over to his closet, thumbing through the rather large assortment of waistcoats he owned to find the match to his pants. As he went through them, it was apparent that he didn't have a single suit in a modern style. In fact, they were all waistcoats, with the exception of the tuxedos, all of which had tails.

Area11:GovernmentBureau:Second-in-Command'sPersonalQuarters – 2017a.t.b.

"One moment, please," Guilford said, in response to a knock on his door. He looked up at the clock on the wall as he finished buttoning his vest. Princess Cornelia had said to be ready by seven, and it was only six-thirty.

He opened the door to see Princess Euphemia standing there with a small box. "Princess Euphemia? What are you doing here?" He realized that he probably shouldn't have been questioning her, but it was just that she had never come to see him like this before. Perhaps he had been mistaken about the time, and she was just coming to get him?

"I know I'm a little early, but I wanted to talk to you alone, and the only time you're not with my sister is when you're about to meet her. So, I thought this would be a good time. It won't take long."

"Of course. Please, come in."

"Thanks." She followed him inside and took a seat on the couch, and he sat across from her in a chair. "I'm actually surprised that Cornelia agreed to come with me to the opening of Clovisland. I know she doesn't really like this sort of thing, but I'm grateful she's using her evening off to go to this, even if it's just for my sake."

"She did care for Clovis, but I believe you are correct in thinking she is doing this for you."

"If you think that's the reason, then I'm sure it is. You know my sister better than anyone."

Guilford reflexively looked at the ground. "O-Oh... no I wouldn't say that. After all, you've known her longer than I have, so has General Darlton."

"I know, but there are things she tells you that she doesn't tell anyone else. Probably because you ask her questions and tell her things that the rest of us are afraid to." Princess Euphemia looked down at the box in her lap, as if suddenly remembering it was there. "Sorry, I didn't mean to get distracted like that. I'm actually here because I have something for you." She smiled rather broadly and held it out to him.

He took it, but gave her a rather confused look. "Why—?"

"I found it while I was going through Clovis's art collection. I don't think it's the sort of thing my sister would want, but I thought you would appreciate it. And besides, I'm sure I missed your birthday, I'm so terrible with dates." She had, in fact, for the last ten years. Not that she'd never gotten him a present; she'd gotten him a birthday _present_ every year, she'd just never given it to him on his birthday, or anytime remotely near his birthday, for that matter. Not that he minded, it was how she was; and in actuality he was quite thankful for it, as she usually gave him something that was related in someway to Cornelia, and he would prefer to not open that sort of gift in front of anyone else.

He opened the box to find a commemorative plate with a hand-painted picture of Princess Cornelia. Although he felt more than a bit embarrassed, he couldn't stop himself from smiling. "Thank you, Princess Euphemia. It's lovely." As he said it, he couldn't help thinking how much more uncomfortable this situation would be if _anyone_else had given this to him, or if Princess Cornelia found out he had it.

Princess Euphemia smiled a bit more for a moment, yet as she watched him examine her gift, her smile began to fade. "You won't give up on her, will you?"

Guilford looked up at her, surprised. "With all due respect, your highness, I have pledged my life and loyalty to Princess Cornelia, and could never leave her service unless ordered to. And even if I hadn't, I—"

"That's not what I meant," she said quickly. "I know you would never quit, or anything like that..."

"Then what are you—?"

"I know you're in love with my sister, and I know that she probably isn't very clear about her feelings... just, please, don't give up. I know it must sound terribly selfish of me, asking you to be alone, just because I think the idea of you seeing anyone else might upset my sister, but—"

"You really think it might—?" He realized how very hopeful he sounded and stopped, clearing his throat and collecting himself before he continued. "I-I mean, all I have done until now, I have done without ever thinking Princess Cornelia would ever return my feelings, and as such I don't intend to make any changes at any point in the future." He had briefly considered trying to tell Princess Euphemia she had misinterpreted the situation, but the events of this evening alone had all but proven otherwise, not to mention the fact that she was so sweet and well-intentioned that lying to her seemed intrinsically wrong.

Euphy's eyes widened for a moment. "Then all this time..." She suddenly smiled at him. "You know, Lord Guilford, you may be the kindest person I've ever met."

Again, he was a bit confused, but before he could respond he heard a knock on the door. "Guilford, it's me. I know I'm early, but it seems Euphy's run off again. I was hoping maybe you'd seen her."

"Oh, I'm here, sister. I had a few questions about the ceremony, and since you seemed busy, I decided to ask Guilford instead." She looked at him. "I'll answer the door, you should probably hide that."

"Y-Yes, it would be rather... difficult to explain." He got up and quickly headed to his room to stuff the plate quickly into a drawer, he'd figure out exactly what to do with it later.

"I really wish you would tell me before you disappear like that. Especially when we're on a schedule. Granted, I don't really consider this ridiculous expedition a serious engagement," he heard Princess Cornelia say as she walked in. She paused for a moment. "Where's Guilford?"

"Oh, I'm almost ready. I just hadn't decided which jacket to wear, I have two that go with this suit." He held them up as she appeared in his doorway; one was a waistcoat, the other a shorter, more contemporary style.

"The waistcoat, if you want my opinion. Those always look so nice on you, although I'm much fonder of Victorian styles in general, so I'm probably biased."

"Very well, then, your highness."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Guilford looked at his reflection once more. He couldn't find anything wrong with it; he looked perfectly acceptable, nice even. Unfortunately, the fact that he was finished getting ready meant that he would actually have to leave his apartment. In all honesty, he would much rather sit at home, however, he could only lock himself alone in his room so many times before he began to look like a recluse. He picked up a pair of white gloves off the top of the dresser and put them on before heading out of his bedroom. Yet, as he opened the door, the sight of his gloved hand on the knob caused him to freeze.

Area11 – GovernmentBureau:Viceroy'sPersonalQuarters – 2017a.t.b.

It was all Guilford could do to keep his hand from shaking as he opened the door. As soon as he walked into the room he felt himself pinned against the door as it was shut behind him.

"You're sure you weren't seen?"

He managed to nod as he heard the lock click. "Y-Y-Yes, your highness."

"Good." Guilford watched Princess Cornelia's gloved hand slip from the knob to his body, running up his chest to remove his waistcoat, allowing it to fall to the ground. She pulled the pin from his cravat and let it drop to the floor as well; a small smirk playing on her lips.

He could feel the heat rising in his cheeks, they had only been doing this sort of thing for a few weeks now, although he was sure that even if they continued for the rest of their lives, he would still feel the same strange mixture of shock, embarrassment and overwhelming joy he felt now. He wasn't sure exactly why Princess Cornelia had decided to pursue a relationship with him so suddenly, although she had briefly mentioned something about Princess Euphemia, so perhaps she was somehow involved. He was afraid to question it though, as he couldn't help feeling that it would all just disappear if he did anything wrong.

"I feel a bit guilty about this. Your having to get dressed so nicely, just for me to ruin it, that is." She wrapped her fingers in the cravat itself and slowly pulled it loose from his neck.

"N-No! I-It's not a problem, really. I-I don't mind..." He always had to dress as if he was leaving the Bureau, make sure he was seen doing so, and then make sure he _wasn't_ seen sneaking back in and coming to Princess Cornelia's quarters. It was all necessary so that no one found out how they were really spending their days off.

She undid the buttons of his vest and shirt, before grabbing him by the collar pulling him rather forcefully into a kiss. Guilford wrapped his arms around her waist, bringing her a bit closer. A small whimper caught in his throat as he felt Princess Cornelia's hand slip under his shirt, pinning him harder against the door and pushing his vest and shirt off of one shoulder. Her fingers ran up the back of his neck to remove his hair tie; grabbing his hair as she pressed her body against his.

Guilford struggled to catch his breath as she pulled back. Princess Cornelia seemed quite pleased as she looked him over: his hair disheveled, face flushed, shirt wrinkled and unbuttoned, glasses askew and beginning to fog, as he leaned up against the door, drawing in ragged breaths. She reached up to push some of his hair behind his ear before removing his glasses, allowing them to hang off her finger, as she began to move in again, pausing only to whisper, "I'm glad to hear that. After all, ruining it is half the fun."

. . . . . . . . . . . .

Guilford sighed as he opened the door, and headed into out of his apartment. No matter how hard he tried, his days off would never be even remotely enjoyable without Princess Cornelia.

**A/N:**If you're wondering, the thing Euphy says about Guilford being the "kindest person she's ever met" is a reference to what she says in Episode 5 ("The Princess and the Witch"), when she tells Suzaku that she thinks "unrequited love is the sign of a kind person," I've personally always assumed she was talking about Guilford.


End file.
